Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1887-07-04
HEROINE OF TWO WARS.
The Romantic Life of Old Crazy Peggy,
Who Served as Spy In the Orlmean War
and a gain for the Confederacy.
New York Mall and Express.

e1AS wy viz OLASA NAI q UOudu VIII
remarkable history, if her statements ar
: trustworthy, Even her neighbors did no
r know her real name, and it is from
friend OF the woman, who had heard he
history frequently, that the story comes
t She was the daughter Of an English IorC
Z and heiress to moderate estate. On In
adjoining estate lived another lord, t
2 whose sen she was betTothed. When n
CrtmeaR war broke out the lover enlisted
t For few months after his departure let
: ters We're received with regularity from
him, and ne seemed TO be in goo
health and spirits. Suddenly all CORE
!, spoGdenCe ceased. His name did not ap
, pear II the death-Iists, which were pub.
Hshed in the London papers, and il wa:
evident ne TES either sick or prisoner
In sn agony Of fear and anXiety,she coulC
stand the suspense no longer, and De
teTmiued TO 60 in quest CT him. Hel
darents, however, forbade it, and heI
friends dissuaded her for 2 snort time
But the continued silence proved unbear-
able, and she finally stole from home one
night, secured
an APPOINTMENT AS NURSE,
| and before her relatives mad obtained g
clue TO her whereabouts was on her way
J ~ Lie lulu. llCuluIDs liz DOEDEOIUS
she was placed in one Of the hospitals at
q small town near the border. She scan
ned with eegerness the faces of the sex
and dying, but found no sign of him she
! sought. Remembering that he might be
IN the same condition as were the poor
/ soldiers around her, she entered into the
work OF ministretion with al her heart
Her efforts were rewarded in an uneX-
DapAaH 40 ~ col ~ -,
one Of the wounded men she ascertaiued
that he had been in the same regiment
with her lover, and that the latter was 8
captive in the hands Of the Russians.
From that moment, although quietly con-
tinCing her nursing, she bent all her fac
ulties to planning some scheme by which
she might gain access to her lovers place
of confinement. She finally concluded to
assume the role of q spy and requested
permission from the commanding officer
to act in that capacity. He at first re-
fused, bu: upon her pleading earnestly he
gave ner consent and supplied her with
the papers necessary for her passing the
English lines.
She disguised herself and pretended she
was half-witted, and by that means got
within the Russian territory. SO artfully
did she play her part that she became
quite s fsyOTite with the soldiers, who
St led Ter
"CRAZY PEGGY"
and allowed her TO do as she pleased. 1t
was many weeks before she learned the
town IL which her betrothed was 8
prisoner. By neat stratagem she in
Guced the keeper of the prison to give her |
access 20 The cells. The taller thought |
her a harmless creature, end permitted |
her to chat at will With the English |
captives. She soon disclosed her |
identity 10 her lover, ana together they |
planned al escape. On g dark, stormy |
night she acted more insaneIy than ever, |
and In enc If her tits SnatCheG the keys |
from the belt Uf the warden Running |
down the stairs she unlocked several of |
the doors, including the one behind |
which her 5etrothed was confined. IN an /
instant ne was out, and, hidden in q dark
corner, he donned a Russian uniform fur
\ shed by The truthful girl. The jailer
gave chase to "CraZy Peggy" and re-
gained the keys, but not before her lover
had walked up the stairs and out into the
open air. "Peggy' followed him ard
they fed through the darkness until they
reached the picket line. Here the pass
word, which had been discovered by
e Peggy" enabled them 10 gain the open
space between the rival armies. An
English coat concealed beneath her
clothes was nut on and the Russian uni
form discarded. IN safety the lines were
passed, and the officer returned TO his
command. So well executed had been all
Of Peggy's plans, and so anxious was her
Oetrothed to continue in service, that
hey both remained in the army, she as g
spy, and he as en- officer. They were
married by q chaplain, however, before
entering
AGAIN INTO ACTIVE DUTY.
Just before the conclusion of the war
he husband died. Nearly heart broken,
Peggy accompanied the remains TO Eng
and to fnG that her parents were dead
md there was nothing left for her except
neat little estate. The associations of
ne place were 80 painful that she deter
mined to come to America. She did so,
md settled in one Of the CaTolinas, where
The taught the slaves several times a
week, with the permission of their own
RS.
The rebellion broke out soon after and
he old Wer fever Coursed through "Peg- '
,y's" veins. She enlisted as a nurse in s
he Confederate army. But her ability {
IS q spy reached the ears of one Of the {
ulcers, and she agreed TO undertake the {
dangerous business. She disguised her
ELF as half-witted woman, went at will
through the Confederate and Union
lrmies. Twice she was held on suspicion '
nd once was placed under guard until I
"A examination could be had. In some t
gay she managed to destroy the papers
u her person and was released. A few I
yenings later she was attacked by I
drunken picket and received wounds that +
CARED her face badly Tor the rest Of ner {
ife. In fact, it was largely because of '
Ter repulsive countenanCe that during {
he last twenty years she was kept in ab-
olute retirement. Her favorite COM I
nsnder was '
GENERAL ROBERT f. LEE, /
nd he regarded her with marked re- t
pect. Peggy said that once, at General l
1ee's personal request, she got as far as {
and secured some important i
Before she could get back g
within the Confederate lines, however, S
he was shut up in Lsn insane asylum J
She escaped, but too late to render the q
Jews OF any practical use. When she /
rst came from England, she invested f
most of her estate IN land and property l
n the south. The war almost impover- T
shed her, but she managed TO save /